Flavor word
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Dungeons & Dragons: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms introduced a very loose approach to ability words called flavor words, which are used to represent themed actions, character feats or magic, or monster abilities, instead of grouping similarly functioning cards. Flavor words also appeared on cards of the Secret Lair: Street Fighter set, which would later be reskinned to Universes Within Magic cards without the flavor words. Later, flavor words became a common tool for Universes Beyond.[1]
Description
Flavor words are not used to thematically group cards (like ability words), but originally refered to iconic Dungeons & Dragons abilities, actions, or spells.[2] In some cases, these precede triggered or activated abilities on a card.[3] Flavor words contribute to the theme of many individual abilities. In many cases, they identify a particular skill or feat a creature from the Forgotten Realms could have. They were created to capture a sense of being on a D&D campaign.[4] A few modal cards in the set use flavor words to better illustrate your choices.[5] In this, they are similar to anchor words. Flavor words use title case as opposed to regular ability words that use proper case.[6] They aren't traditionally used on multiple cards.[7]
Rules
From the glossary of the Comprehensive Rules (June 7, 2024—Modern Horizons 3)
- Flavor Word
- An italicized word with no rules meaning that provides a flavorful description of an ability. See rule 207.2d.
From the Comprehensive Rules (June 7, 2024—Modern Horizons 3)
- 207.2d Similar to ability words, flavor words appear in italics at the beginning of some abilities. Flavor words provide a flavorful description of abilities, but they have no special rules meaning and are not listed in the Comprehensive Rules. While an ability word ties together several abilities with similar functionality, each flavor word is tailored to the specific ability it appears with.
List of flavor words
Adventures in the Forgotten Realms
- Acid Breath
- Animate Walking Statue
- Antimagic Cone
- Archery
- Bardic Inspiration
- Beacon of Hope
- Bear Form
- Befriend Them
- Bewitching Whispers
- Binding Contract
- Brave the Stench
- Break Their Chains
- Charge Them
- Clever Conjurer
- Climb Over
- Combat Inspiration
- Cold Breath
- Cone of Cold
- Cunning Action
- Cure Wounds
- Dispel Magic
- Displacement
- Dissolve
- Distract the Guard
- Divine Intervention
- Dominate Monster
- Drag Below
- Engulf
- Fear Ray
- Fend Them Off
- Fight the Current
- Find a Crossing
- Flurry of Blows
- Foil Their Scheme
- Form a Party
- Gentle Repose
- Grant an Advantage
- Hide
- Interrogate Them
- Intimidate Them
- Journey On
- Keen Senses
- Learn Their Secrets
- Life Drain
- Lift the Curse
- Lightning Breath
- Magical Tinkering
- Make a Retreat
- Make Camp
- Poison Breath
- Pry It Open
- Psionic Spells
- Rappel Down
- Rejuvenation
- Rouse the Party
- Search the Body
- Search the Room
- Set Off Traps
- Siege Monster
- Smash It
- Smash the Chest
- Song of Rest
- Split
- Stand and Fight
- Start a Brawl
- Steal Its Eyes
- Stunning Strike
- Tail Spikes
- Teleport
- Tie Up
- Tragic Backstory
- Trapped!
- Two-Weapon Fighting
- Whirlwind
- Whispers of the Grave
- Wild Magic Surge
Adventures in the Forgotten Realms Commander Decks
- Astral Projection
- Berserk
- Breathe Flame
- Create Undead
- Enrage
- Focus Beam
- Mystic Arcanum
- Negative Energy Cone
- Pact Boon
- Perfect Illumination
- Smash Relics
Street Fighter
- Electric Thunder
- Fierce Punch
- Flash Kick
- Hadoken
- Hundred Hand Slap
- Iron Muscle
- Lightning Kick
- Rolling Attack
- Teleport
- Shoryuken
- Sonic Boom
- Spinning Piledriver
- Sumo Spirit
Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate
- Animate Chains
- Avoidance
- Bigby’s Hand
- Blood Drain
- Body Thief
- Bribe the Guards
- Call for Aid
- Ceremorphosis
- Confounding Clouds
- Conjure Elemental
- Crown of Madness
- Death Ray
- Devour Intellect
- Disintegration Ray
- Enthralling Performance
- Feed
- Friends
- Gathered Swarm
- Gather Your Courage
- Gust of Wind
- Homunculus Servant
- Infesting Spores
- Keen Sight
- Lure the Unwary
- Mama's Coming
- Mantle of Inspiration
- Mold Harvest
- Natural Recovery
- Natural Shelter
- Pray for Protection
- Protection Fighting Style
- Psychic Blades
- Psychic Defense
- Run and Hide
- Scorching Ray
- Sleight of Hand
- Spiked Retribution
- Stall for Time
- Strike a Deal
- Threaten the Merchant
- Toxic Spores
- Vicious Mockery
- Weird Insight
- Wind Walk
Battle for Baldur's Gate Commander Decks
- Aberrant Tinkering
- Buy Information
- Hire a Mercenary
- Hive Mind
- Horrific Symbiosis
- Loud Ruckus
- Mold Earth
- Probing Telepathy
- Project Image
- Sell Contraband
Alchemy Horizons: Baldur's Gate
- Aim for the Wyvern
- Aim for the Cursed Amulet
- Calim Breath
- Fire a Warning Shot
- Gift of Tiamat
- Molting Exoskeleton
- Psionic Adept
- Rage Beyond Death
- Rejuvenation
- Wild Shape
Unfinity
- Crash Land
Warhammer 40,000 Commander Decks
- A Thousand Souls Die Every Day
- Advanced Species
- Aegis of the Emperor
- Allure of Slaanesh
- Arcane Life-support
- Architect of Deception
- Armor of Shrieking Souls
- Atomic Transmutation
- Battle Cannon
- Benediction of Omnissiah
- Berzerker
- The Betrayer
- Bio-plasmic Barrage
- Bio-Plasmic Scream
- Blade of Magnus
- Blood Chalice
- Bring it Down!
- Brood Telepathy
- Chainsword
- Chapter Master
- Children of the Cult
- Command Protocols
- Command Section
- Concealed Position
- Coruscating Flames
- Crushing Teeth
- Curse of the Walking Pox
- Daemon Sword
- Death Frenzy
- Devastating Charge
- Devourer of Souls
- Devouring Monster
- Drain Life
- Dynastic Advisor
- Dynastic Codes
- Dynastic Command Node
- Echo of the First Murder
- Elite Troops
- Endless Swarm
- Endurant
- Enmitic Exterminator
- Eternity Gate
- Executioner Round
- Exile Cannon
- Fabricator Claw Array
- Fallen Warrior
- Fast Healing
- Feeder Mandibles
- Field Reprogramming
- Fire of Tzeentch
- Flesh Flayer
- Flesh Hooks
- Frenzied Metabolism
- Frenzied Rampage
- Gatling Blaster
- Genestealer’s Kiss
- Genomic Enhancement
- Gift of Chaos
- Grand Strategist
- Grav-cannon
- Guardian Patrols
- Harbinger of Despair
- Healing Tears
- Heavy Power Hammer
- Heavy Rock Cutter
- Hunt for Heresy
- Hyperfang Round
- Hyperphase Threshers
- Hypertoxic Miasma
- Inquisition Agents
- Invasion Beams
- Jolly Gutpipes
- Leading from the Front
- Locus of Slaanesh
- Lord of Chaos
- Lord of the Pyrrhian Legions
- Lord of Torment
- Mark of the Chaos Ascendant
- Martyrdom
- Master of Machines
- Master Tactician
- Matter Absorption
- Medicus Ministorum
- Multi-threat Eliminator
- My Will Be Done
- Neurotraumal Rod
- Phaeron
- Phalanx Commander
- Pheromone Trail
- Plasma Incinerator
- Polymorphine
- Praesidium Protectiva
- Primarch of the Death Guard
- Prince of Chaos
- Prismatic Gallery
- Proclamator Hailer
- Protector
- Psychic Abomination
- Psychic Stimulus
- Rapacious Hunger
- Rapid Regeneration
- Rapid-fire Battle Cannon
- Relentless Mind
- Repair Barge
- Reverberating Summons
- Rites of Banishment
- Rogue Trader
- Rosarius
- Rot Fly
- Ruinous Ascension
- Sarcophagus
- Scavenge the Dead
- Secrets of the Soul
- The Seven-fold Chant
- Shieldwall
- Shrieking Gargoyles
- Sigil of Corruption
- Skilled Outrider
- Skyswarm
- Sonic Blaster
- Sorcerous Elixir
- Sorcerous Inspiration
- Spawn Termagants
- Spear of the Void Dragon
- Spiritual Leader
- Split
- Spore Chimney
- Stowage
- Strategic Coordinator
- Strive
- Subterranean Assault
- Summary Execution
- Suppressing Fire
- Symphony of Pain
- Synapse Creature
- Synaptic Disintegrator
- Targeting Relay
- Terror from the Deep
- Three Autostubs
- Titanic
- Transdimensional Scout
- Translocation Protocols
- Ultima Founding
- Unearthly Power
- Unquestionable Wisdom
- Vanguard Species
- Veil of Time
- Void Shields
- Warp Blast
- The Will of the Hive Mind
- Warp Vortex
- Wraith Form
- Xenos Cunning
Ponies: The Galloping 2
- Everypony's Invited
- Family Gathering
- Sonic Rainboom
Doctor Who
- Affirmative
- Allons-y!
- Bad Wolf
- Battalion
- Body-print
- Body Thief
- Brand-new Sky
- Brave Heart
- Byzantium Radiation
- Bear Witness
- Consume Anomaly
- Deal with the Black Guardian
- Exterminate!
- Grenades!
- Glory of Battle
- History Teacher
- How Civil of You
- I. AM. TALKING!
- Impossible Girl
- Into the TARDIS
- The Last Centurion
- Look to the Stars
- Low Gravity
- Make Them Pay
- Meet in Reverse
- Midnight Entity
- The Most Important Punch in History
- Negative
- Nitro-9
- Parallel Universe
- Peaceful Coexistence
- Praise Him
- Red-Eye
- Sanctified Rules of Combat
- Science Teacher
- Share Intelligence
- Sixty-Six Seconds
- Sonic Booster
- Song of the Ood
- Spoilers
- Still Point in Time
- Suspended Animation
- Team TARDIS
- Temporal Foresight
- Time Lord's Prerogative
- Timey-Wimey
- Ultimate Sacrifice
- Water Always Wins
- Woman Who Walked the Earth
- Would You Like A ...
Secret Lair Drop Series: Tomb Raider
- A Guardian of the Light
Fallout
- Blind Betrayal
- Come Fly With Me
- Crash Landing
- Decimate
- ED-E My Love
- Hunters for Hire
- One for My Baby
- Wild Card
Assassin's Creed
- Buy Information
- Hire a Mercenary
- Leap of Faith
- Leap Strike
- Let The World Burn
- Release Juno
- Rope Dart
- Sell Contraband
Background
Flavor words have been used before in other Wizards of the Coast TCGs.[8] Their use in future sets is more likely for Universes Beyond than normal Magic.[9][10][1] If necessary, flavor words may be removed if a card is reprinted.[11] As Black Market Connections shows, they also may be added to a reprint, without changing its functionality.
Flavor words involving a modal choice can also be accounted as anchor words.[12][13]
Reused
Something being a flavor word doesn't prevent R&D from later using it as a card name or mechanic name. Mark Rosewater stated that there probably would be at least a few years where R&D wouldn't use them, but after that, he thought that the flavor words would be fair game as card or mechanic names.[14] In fact, some flavor words were reused within two years:
- Scion of Stygia (Forgotten Realms) — Cone of Cold (Baldur's Gate)
- Chaos Channeler (Forgotten Realms) — Wild Magic Surge (Baldur's Gate)
Card names can also be reused as flavor words:
- Crash Landing (Guildpact) — Commander Sofia Daguerre (Fallout)
- Decimate (Odyssey) — Legate Lanius, Caeser’s Ace (Fallout)
- Devour Intellect (Forgotten Realms) — Intellect Devourer (Baldur's Gate)
- Drain Life (Limited Edition Alpha) — Shard of the Nightbringer (Warhammer 40,000 Commander Decks)
- Leap of Faith (Avacyn Restored) — Towering Viewpoint (Assassin's Creed)
References
- ↑ a b Mark Rosewater (May 17, 2022). "First Out of Baldur's Gate". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Flavor Words (Video). Good Morning Magic. YouTube (June 29, 2021).
- ↑ Jess Dunks (July 12, 2021). "Adventures in the Forgotten Realms Release Notes". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 12, 2021). "D&D-esign, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Matt Tabak (June 24, 2021). "Adventures in the Forgotten Realms Mechanics". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 3, 2021). "Hey mark would you count pack tactics from afr as...". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (January 10, 2022). "Even More Words From R&D". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 1, 2021). "Where flavorwords influenced by the kaijudo tcg...". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (June 30, 2021). "Are flavor words something we should expect in...". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 2, 2021). "Odds & Ends: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms, Part 1". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (July 10, 2021). "Flavor text can be changed when a card is...". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 28, 2022). "Deciduous". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (March 29, 2022). "You seem to count flavor words as anchor words. Is that correct?". Blogatog. Tumblr.
- ↑ Mark Rosewater (August 9, 2021). "Odds & Ends: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms, Part 2". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.